Research recommends ban on ship scrubber discharge

EU countries should ban wastewater discharge generated by scrubbers to limit ships’ environmental impact, a study for the German environmental protection agency UBA has recommended. Limiting the discharge generated by scrubbers is the best way to prevent potential damage, such as the release of pollutants, increased acidity and increased temperature and turbidity, the researchers said.

“In principle, the use of clean liquid (diesel) and gas (LNG) fuels is preferable to an exhaust gas after treatment for the purpose of sulphur reduction,” the researchers said. German coastal waters are already under heavy pressure from shipping, and the contaminated wastewater “adds a further stress factor for marine organisms in the North Sea and Baltic Sea as well as the adjacent catchment areas supporting shipping traffic”, they argued.
Source: ENDS Europe Daily, 12 August 2015